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A-Rod out of starting lineup with sore left foot

A-Rod out of starting lineup with sore left foot

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Alex Rodriguez

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MLB.com |

MINNEAPOLIS -- Alex Rodriguez was not in the Yankees' starting lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins after taking a foul tip off his foot on Tuesday.

The ball bruised the top of Rodriguez's left foot during his fourth and final at-bat in the eighth inning of Tuesday's 5-4 loss to Minnesota at Target Field. He remained in the game after the foul tip, eventually grounding out to shortstop.

Rodriguez did not undergo X-rays, and New York manager Joe Girardi is optimistic that he won't have to miss more than one game. Even without the injury, Girardi may have kept Rodriguez out of Wednesday's lineup as a routine off-day.

"He's sore today," Girardi said before the game. "I'll have to see as we go through the day and he gets some treatment if he's available as a pinch-hitter. It's probably a good day anyway, after playing eight games in a row, a doubleheader, a 14-inning game -- he probably needs a day anyway."

Even if Rodriguez is able to play in Thursday's game in Toronto, he may be in line for a couple of days as New York's designated hitter because of the turf at Rogers Centre.

"I worry a little bit more about the turf than I do the dirt," Girardi said.

The third baseman has been mired in a slight power outage of late. Rodriguez entered Wednesday hitting .233 (10-for-43) over his last 10 games, without any extra-base hits. His last extra-base hit was a home run on Sept. 14 against Tampa Bay, his 18th of the season.

"It's such a fine line, mechanically, to be sound and not be a little bit out in front or a little bit late or chase a ball a little bit off [the plate]," Girardi said. "It's just kind of what guys go to. At any point, they get hot and start driving the ball again.

The absence of Rodriguez's right-handed bat also saw Girardi do a little shuffling with his Wednesday lineup. Instead of leading off, Derek Jeter hit second for only the eighth time this season, while Ichiro Suzuki batted in the top spot.

Robinson Cano started at second base and hit third, while Nick Swisher started at first and batted cleanup.

"You see what happens when we have to stack our lefties," Girardi said. "That's always a concern for me. Sometimes you just got to do it and figure it out."